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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: present · date · pound · bass · race · fan · spell · season

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. present — there
  3. bass — low music
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. date — the fruit
  6. bass — the fish
  7. season — in sport
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. race — a contest
  12. season — of the year
  13. present — the time now
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. spell — magic
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. spell — letters
  18. spell — a short time
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. race — the arms race
  21. pound — a weight
  22. present — a gift
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. race — humankind

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com